
I woke up with a shrill of yell that penetrated the depth of
night. My eyes riveted in the darkness that swathed me. But, no…it was more
than that…the cry was familiar…I chilled when I heard it again. I wasn’t
dreaming…
It was almost the end of summer when my former classmates in
elementary agreed to spend an over night swimming in a nearby town’s beach
resort. Most of them were in their last days of vacation and about to be back
in Manila for their studies.
I had that deep resolution not to join them since the
following day I needed to go to the city for the final procedure of enrolment.
My parents were quite adamant also to give their permission because when we had
night swimming for my sister’s birthday, I arrived home burning with fever.
After several “conscience pleadings” from my friends and
prodding from my sister, Angel, I’ve finally relented. After all, I could opt
not just to join them in swimming.
My best friend in elementary and I chatted endlessly walking
barefooted along the shore while others enjoyed swimming immediately. Not long
after, when she decided to join the rest of the group in the water, I fell in a
deep doze in the cottage.
It was supposedly a nice clean outing by close friends but
turned out into a nightmare.
I was trembling when I scrambled on my feet trying to figure
out where the sound came from. Then, I saw a friend running while shouting my
name. She told me that my sister got entangled with a jelly (famous for the
name salabay)- a killer jelly we found out later.
I saw the whole group pouring her water trying to remove some
tentacles that perforated her skin. She was screaming the whole time and
fainted several times. We immediately brought her to the nearest hospital not
having any first aid to help her.
When we reached the hospital, she was still unconscious and
her arms were swollen as if painted with red ugly lines. Her legs were not
spared too.
Time occurred in a haze. When we finally reached home, my
sister was writhing with fever. Her arms were still swollen. My friends
courageously explained to my furious parents what happened while I was in shock
the whole time.
My sister cried non stop and she was immediately brought
again to the hospital to be confined. She stayed in the local hospital for
about two days but her condition only got worst. She had on and off fever and
her blood pressure was fluctuating.
It was the second night when my parents were warned my sister
could not make it. We brought her to the city hospital in an ambulance and that
was the longest journey of my life. She was given 24 hours to live.
It was an agonizing moment waiting for her to be out of that
ordeal. The doctors said they have not treated yet any case like that. Though
she was always in pain killers, it didn’t ease the pain she was going through.
She was in and out of consciousness.
Angel survived that traumatic accident. However, the
tentacles left permanent scars in several parts of her body. Her skin was
severely damaged and until now the ugly red blemishes are still visible.
Up to this day, it’s still a big puzzle why I wasn’t with the
group in the water when it happened. Some of them also had scars because of the
tentacles though not so severe. Was my being a loner spared me from that
incident?
Every summer
after that, my friends and I reminisced that experience with disbelief in our
faces. Oh, we did learn our lesson. We never had another swimming in the beach
again…only in a pool.
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